Historic Sites of Manitoba: Anna Gibson School (77 Henderson Highway, Winnipeg)

Link to:
Principals | Vice-Principals | Teachers | Photos & Coordinates | Sources

Situated on Kelvin Street, later renamed Henderson Highway, in Winnipeg, a one-storey, six-classroom brick structure was designed by local architect James Bertram Mitchell and built in 1919 by the Sutherland Construction Company at a cost of about $39,000. It was used as a school for students in grades 1 to 5 with those in sixth grade going to nearby Lord Selkirk School.

It was named Anna Gibson School to commemorate Anna Whitworth Gibson (1897-1918), the 21-year-old daughter of Winnipeg timber merchant Thomas Gibson who taught at La Verendrye School. During the 1918-1919 flu pandemic, she volunteered to nurse flu victims at the King George Hospital, contracted flu herself, died on 23 November, and was buried in the Elmwood Cemetery.

Classes were held in this building until 1937. During the Second World War, it accommodated soldiers and, in 1944, was sold to the Mennonite Brethren Bible College and used to train church workers and missionaries. Later used as a dance studio, in 1985 it was renamed the A. H. Unruh Building in commemoration of the founding President of the College.

The building was demolished during the summer of 2005. A monument stands at the site, made from bricks and dome from the original building.

Principals

Period	Principal
1920-1921	Thomas Edgar Argue (1869-1927)
1921-1937	Jane Augusta Bredin Wilson (1871-1963)

Teachers

School Year	Teachers
1920-1921	?
1921-1922	V. Hefford, Z. Johnson, Miss K. S. MacLeod, C. Munshaw
1922-1923	J. Manthorne, V. McIntyre, Miss K. S. MacLeod, G. Munshaw
1923-1924	E. Buchanan, V. McIntyre, Miss K. S. MacLeod
1924-1925	Janet A. Alexander, Winifred Rowe Bawden, Miss K. S. MacLeod, E. M. Moore
1925-1926	Janet A. Alexander, Winifred Rowe Bawden, Miss K. S. MacLeod, E. M. Moore
1926-1927	Janet A. Alexander, Winifred Rowe Bawden, Miss K. S. MacLeod, E. M. Moore
1927-1928	Janet A. Alexander, Winifred Rowe Bawden, Miss K. S. MacLeod, E. M. Moore
1928-1929	Janet A. Alexander, Winifred Rowe Bawden, Miss K. S. MacLeod, E. M. Moore, M. Pennefather
1929-1930	Janet A. Alexander, Winifred Rowe Bawden, E. M. Moore, Norma M. Wemyss, Rutha H. Wilson
1930-1931	Winifred Rowe Bawden, L. M. Burt, Norma Margaret Wemyss, Rutha H. Wilson
1931-1932	Winifred Rowe Bawden, Sara Silver, Norma Margaret Wemyss, Rutha H. Wilson
1932-1933	Winifred Rowe Bawden, Sara Silver, Norma Margaret Wemyss
1933-1934	Winifred Rowe Bawden, G. B. McInnes, Norma Margaret Wemyss
1934-1935	Winifred Rowe Bawden, G. B. McInnes, Sara Silver
1935-1936	Winifred Rowe Bawden, G. B. McInnes
1936-1937	G. B. McInnes

Photos & Coordinates

Anna Gibson School (1919) Source: Winnipeg School Board, Annual Report 1919, Legislative Library of Manitoba. Anna Gibson School Monument (February 2015) Source: Nathan Kramer Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.91025, W97.11757 denoted by symbol on the map above

See also:

Memorable Manitobans: James Bertram Mitchell (1852-1945)

Manitoba Business: Sutherland Construction Company

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Children’s Home of Winnipeg / Children’s Home School / Julia Clark School (615 Academy Road, Winnipeg)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Martin School No. 870 (Kelvin Avenue, Winnipeg)

Sources:

Death registration [Anna W. Gibson], Manitoba Vital Statistics.

“Teacher and trained nurse sacrifice lives in fighting “flu”,” Winnipeg Tribune, 25 November 1918, page 1.

City of Winnipeg Building Permit 648/1919, City of Winnipeg Archives.

“Schools will not open until Monday,” Manitoba Free Press, 26 November 1918, page 5.

“Winnipeg schools, No. 36—Anna Gibson,” Manitoba Free Press, 27 November 1922, page 7.

Henderson’s Winnipeg and Brandon Directories, Henderson Directories Limited, Peel’s Prairie Provinces, University of Alberta Libraries.

Obituary [Winifred Rowe Bawden], Winnipeg Free Press, 11 December 1975, page 53.

“Historic Anna Gibson School / A. H. Unruh Building slated for destruction,” Mennonite Historian, 31(2):5, June 2005.

We thank Nathan Kramer and Jordan Makichuk for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 18 March 2024

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